Aftermath
by Amber-Sherlock
Summary: Will And Lrya Meet Again, Midsummers Day.


Okay So... I Choose To Use Philip Pullmans Dark Materials Trilogy And This Is A Year After Will And Lyra Split. (1st Chapter/Part)

Lyra Silvertounge walked slowly in the midday sun, little sporadic flashes of dreamy gold speckling the pathway and leaves whispering in the breeze. They all seemed to whisper one name, Will. She missed him more than she could bear and Midsummer's day was always the worst. She reached an old iron gate covered with ivy and opened it, slipping through into the botanical gardens. Exotic flowers bloomed, their strong, strange scents heavily perfuming the air and trees casting dark shadows, a cool relief from the fierce sun. Pantalaimon skipped ahead of her, racing through the trees, jumping out at her but Lyra remained stony-faced and deep in thought. Eventually the path twisted, ending in an alcove in which a massive statuesque oak stood, hundreds of years old and a bench stretching out below it. A small, dreamy smile spread Lyra's thin lips as her mind went back a year, where she and Will shared their last kiss. Dropping down onto the bench tears formed in her eyes, all the pain she had managed to stifle inside her burst forth and for a moment she was the same small girl, full of grace and arrogance that Will had known. She had changed so much in the year they had been apart and she only wished that he could be with her so they could together witness the wonder of growing up. The bells began to toll, startling Lyra and Pantalaimon flowed onto her lap and nuzzled at her hands gently. Somewhere, Lyra knew Will was sat on this bench with Kirjava, possibly even staring up at the mighty branches of the oak as she was and wishing things were different, thinking about her and the endless could-have-beens. The last echo of the bells silenced and Lyra stood, heavy and soft from sadness and gazed around her, at the flowers, the sapphire blue sky and the fragile ringing green of the summer leaves... she felt a tingle on the back of her neck and a wave of premonition took her over, swaying in the botanical gardens, Pantalaimon round her neck as a patch of the low trees seemed to open...

Holding her breath, Lyra wheeled around to see Will, her darling Will stepping out of the sky. His hair was longer and even more handsome, falling into his serious hazel eyes. His smile was like a beam of sunlight dancing on Lyra's face, her heart came into her throat and she threw herself into his arms, sobbing and shaking. All she could feel was his heartbeat against her temples, his warm hands at the small of her back, all she could hear was his every breath, all she could taste was his life. She saw Kirjava and Pantalaimon nuzzling blissfully. He lifted her chin with his hand and stared intently into her eyes, thrilling her but she looked steadily into his, so comforting and so real; he was here! She tried to say something but the words caught in her throat, was she dreaming? Oh how she wished it could never stop, she would have gladly died in this moment, with Will's hands at her waist and under her chin, his eyes gazing into hers with such compassion. He let go and walked away, Lyra feeling a merciless tug at her heart, but he stopped at the bench and sat, Kirjava leaping up beside him lightly, with a look of amusement on his face as Lyra stood frozen.

"Come and sit down, won't you?" he had spoken, his voice the one she heard in her dreams and the voice she loved and knew so well.

She staggered over, her feet tripping over one another and not making sense as if she were drunk. She sat heavily and for a few moments they just sat, savouring each others company, listening content to each other's breathing.

"So..." Lyra said, her voice startling her, so loud in the cosy silence of the gardens. "You didn't break the knife?"

He sighed loudly and put his arm about her shoulders, pulling her into him.

"No" he said quietly, "I didn't."

He fixed her with a sombre gaze and offered a grim smile, pulling the corners of his mouth down. He shrugged with some difficulty and continued:

"I broke a normal knife," he began hesitantly and pulled Lyra closer, "I couldn't deal without you, and for all my life i have always sacrificed what i need for the greater good. I wasn't going to let you go."

Questions raced around Lyras mind like a tempest; How did he fool Serafina Pekkala? What about spectres and Dust? What about the ghosts? Will sighed loudly, realising this would take alot of explainng. well, he reminded himself, this was Lyra. se said she had changed, but if she had he could not see it, she was still beautiful, stubborn and captivated him so.


End file.
